Block leveler apparatus



Dec. 20, 1966 A. MARKOULIS BLOCK LEVELER APPARATUS Filed Aug. 24, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig. '2

Fig.

INVENTOR Angelo Markouli .1 j I M Attorney A. MARKOULIS BLOCK LEVELER APPARATUS Dec. 20, 1966 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed Aug. 24, 1964 M 14 Aflorney United States Patent BLOCK LEVELER APPARATUS Angelo Markoulis, 179 11th St., San Francisco, Calif. 94118 Filed Aug. 24, 1964, Ser. No. 391,462 3 Claims. (Cl. 9015) The invention relates to devices for planing blocks such as those used on clicking machines which die out sheet material such as fabrics and leather for footwear.

An object of the present invention is to provide a lightweight and conveniently sized portable device of the character described which is designed for leveling or resurfacing the whole or any desired portion of the surface of a clicking machine block.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a device of the character above which is of relatively simple low-cost construction providing operation of high reliability, composed of a minimum of ruggedly formed parts designed to afford a long and service free life, and capable of planing blocks more accurately and in less time than present devices.

A further object of the present inventionis to provide a device which can be easily operated to plane a block with a minimum of overlap between cutting strokes.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a device which can be easily adjusted to compensate for normal wear in the bearing surfaces of the device to maintain the accuracy with which the block is planed.

The invention possesses other objects and features of advantage, some of which of the foregoing will set forth in the following description of the preferred form of the invention which is illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of this specification. It is to be understood, however, that variations in the showing made by said drawings and the description may be adopted within the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

Referring to said drawings (two sheets):

FIGURE 1 is a side View of a block leveler apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention and attached to a clicking machine.

FIGURE 2 is a plan view of the apparatus and clicking machine shown in FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is partial side view, shown on an enlarged scale, of the apparatus showing a portion of the block in cross-section.

FIGURE 4 is a front elevational view, shown on an enlarged scale, of the apparatus showing a portion of the block in cross-section and a portion of the clicking machine arm in phantom.

FIGURE 5 is a partial cross-sectional view, shown on an enlarged scale, of the apparatus as shown in FIGURE 3 and taken along the line 5-5.

FIGURE 6 is a partial cross-sectional view, shown on an enlarged scale, of a portion of the apparatus shown in FIGURE 3 and taken along the line 66.

FIGURE 7 is a side view of the cutting head and blades and a portion of the motor shaft shown in FIGURES 3 and 4 but on an enlarged scale.

FIGURE 8 is a side view of a portion of the device shown in FIGURE 7.

FIGURE 9 is a plan view of the cutting head shown in FIGURES 7 and 8.

The block leveler apparatus 6, as above described, is adapted for attachment to a clicking machine 7 having an upright 8, an arm 9 pivotally mounted on the upright and a block 11 positioned below the arm and consists briefly on an elongated guide member 12 adapted for con nection to and substantially parallel with the clicking machine arm 9 and having vertically spaced longitudinally extending bearing surfaces 13, 14, 15 and 16; a slide "ice member 18, slidably mounted for reciprocating movement on the guide and having vertically spaced bearing surfaces 21, 22, 23, and 24 in registration with the guide bearing surfaces; motor means 26 mounted on the slide member above the bearing surfaces including a substantially vertical rotatable shaft 27 connected to the motor means;

the slide member being formed with a substantially ver-- tical bore 28 contiguous with the slide bearing surfaces for journaling the shaft; a cutter head 29 mounted on the shaft for rotation therewith; and cutter blades 31 and 32 mounted on the cutter head adapted for planing the surface of the block to a smooth even plane; the shaft being mounted on the slide member to position the cutter blade so that the entire area of the block can be planed by the cutter blades.

The top surface of block 11 used on clickers is generally constructed of a thick layer of plastic which becomes worn and uneven during use due to the sharp cutting dies used in the cutting of leather and other mate rials. In order to maintain the blocks as good cutting surfaces they must be planed smooth when the surface becomes out of level to a depth of as little as A of an inch. The blocks are placed on the clicker as shown in FIGURES l and 2 within a few inches of the upright member 8. Placement of the block 11 close to the upright 8 creates a serious problem in planing the entire block by means of a block leveler which can be demountably secured to the clicker arm 9. Present devices either require the removal of the block 11 from the machine for planing or other block levelers may be attached to arm 9 but are unable to plane the entire block and portions contiguous to the upright 8 must be leveled by hand filing. The present device is capable of planing the entire surface by positioning the cutter blades in close proximity to the center line of the clicker arm 9.

The assemblage for planing the entire block is described in greater detail as follows: guide member 12 consists of a body member 36 having flanges 37, 38 and 39 protruding at right angles therefrom to engage flange 41 of clicker arm 9. Attaching bolts 42 and 43 threadably mounted in flange 37 secure guide 12 to clicker arm flange 41. Bearing surfaces 13 and 16 provide vertical and horizontal thrust surfaces while bearing surfaces 14 and 15 provide horizontal thrust surfaces only. Slide 18 is made of cast metal and is a compact integral unit for carrying motor 26; attaching to guide 12 and providing a journal for shaft 27. Motor means 26 is a onehalf horsepower electrical motor developing a shaft speed of about 3,450 rpm. Shaft 27 is coupled to motor 26 by any suitable coupling means 46 to provide removal of motor 26.

A further advantage of the present construction is the great accuracy obtainable in planing the block surface to a smooth plane which is effected by reducing the cantilever arm distance from the clicker arm 9 to shaft 27 to a minimum. Thus the effect of twisting of the clicker arm 9 is reduced.

Still another advantage of the present device is the fact that the entire block may be planed to a smooth even surface with only a single setup. This feature is made possible by locating shaft 27 interjacent the ends of the bearing surfaces on slide member 18. In the present device bore 28 journaling shaft 27 is about midway between the ends of the slide member.

A further feature of the present device is the provision for adjusting the level of the slide member as normal wear occurs on bearing surfaces of the slide member 18. An adjustable member 47 which here consists of a strip of brass is placed on surface 24 of slide member 18. Set screw 48 is threadably mounted at the lower end of slide member 18 and provided with nut 49 for locking the set screw to the desired height.

The upper end 51 of set screw 48 bears against the lower side of adjustable member 47 and here registers with a depression 52 in adjustable member 47.

Another. feature of applicants device is the provision of a structure to prevent slide member 18 from moving in relation to the 'guide member 12 during the a-rcuate movement of arm 9. Here provided is a rack 56 having gear teeth and mounted in a groove 57 formed in the body 36 f guide member 12. The gear teeth in rack 56 mate with ratchet gear 58 mounted for rotation with shaft 59 journaled in boss 61 of slide member 18. Handwheel 62 is mounted for rotation on shaft 59 by key 63. Handwheel 62 may be conveniently turned manually by handle 64 attached thereto.

Still another feature of applicants device is the selection of ratchet wheel 58 of sufficient diameter and spacing of teeth on rack 56 to enable the operator to move slide member 18 on guide member 12 a specified distance so as to provide a minimum of overlap in successive passes over the block 11 during the planing operation. In the present device, one revolution of wheel 62 automatically correctly moves cutting head 29 the correct distance for the adjacent cutting path. 7

Mounting of the shaft 27 in close proximity to flange 41 of the clicker arm 9 is made possible by the unique construction of the slide member 18. Specifically, the slide member is shaped in the form of an L including in order to provide even cutting of blades 31 and 32, by adjusting set screws 48 and 82. When the aforesaid adjustments have been made Wheel 62 is rotated so as to place slide member 18 at the extremities of the guide member 12 in order to begin planing block 11. Clicker arm 9 is pivotally moved to one side of block 11, motor 26 turned on by means of switch 76 to rotate cutter blades 31 at high speed and an arcuate pass is made over block 11. After a single pass, wheel 62 is rotated one revolution and clicker arm 9 is moved in an arcuate pat-h in the opposite direction. Successive passes are made over block 11 until the entire block is planed. The final area of the block 11 adjacent to the upright 8 may be planed by rotating clicker arm 9 in a counter-clockwise direcplaning of the block 11 but if some areas are extremely badly grooved the operation may be repeated.

I claim:

1. A block leveler apparatus for a machine having an upright, an arm pivotally mounted on said upright and a block positioned below said arm comprising:

a horizontal leg 66 and vertical leg 67 depending down- Wardly therefrom. This L-shaped construction enables the motor 26 to be mounted above and partially over the bearing surfaces of the slide member and the guide member, and motor means 26 may be bolted directly to the horizontal member 26 by means of bolts or other fasteners 68.

Slide member 18 is here mounted on guide member 12 providing a dove-tail joint at the bearing surfaces 13, 14, 15,16, 21, 22, 23 and 24 by forming surfaces 13, 16, 21, and 24 on a bias.

Planing .of blocks is more quickly accomplished by providing cutter blades 31 and 32 which have an elongated cutting edge 71 and 72 mounted along a radius of the cutter head 29 for planing a wide area of the surface of the block for each revolution of the cutter head. Cutter head 29 is here attached to shaft 27 by means of a bolt 73.

A portion of cutter blades 31 here extend beyond the periphery of cutter head 29 and plane an area of about 1 /2 inches in width for each pass over the block. The gearing of the ratchet wheel and rack is such that there is an overlap of about /a inch between passes over the block when the wheel 62 is rotated one revolution.

The cutter head is here provided with two cutter blades. One cutter blade will work, but a more even cut is provided with two. It has been found that the provision of three blades overheats the plastic surface causing some softening of the plastic.

It has also been found that satisfactory planing can be accomplished when the cutting depth is set as much as yi of an inch for a single pass of the cutter blade over the plastic block.

The operation of the block leveler is as follows: planing of the block surface is required when portions of the surface are as little as 1 inch below the general surface of the block. The present device is attached directly to flange 41 of clicker arm 9 by means of bolts 42 and 43. It has been found that sloping the surface of block 11 in relation to the under surface 81 of arm 9 is desirable and may be accomplished by placing shims (not shown) between flange 41 and the flanges of the guide member 12. Guide member 12 is adjusted so as to be parallel to the surface of block 11 by means of shims (not shown) and bolts 42 and 43. Slide member 18 is further adjusted so that shaft 27 will be perpendicular to the longitudinal cross-sectionalaxis of guide member 12 an elongated guide member adapted for connection to and substantially parallel with said machine arm and having vertically spaced longitudinally extending superposed bearing surfaces;

slide means including a vertical slide member slidably mounted for reciprocating movement on said guide and having vertically spaced superposed bearing surfaces in registration with said guide bearing surfaces and a horizontal member connected to the upper part of said vertical member adapted for receiving a motor means, said horizontal member and said motor means overlapping said arm of said block leveler apparatus;

motor means mounted on said horizontal member above said bearing surfaces including a substantially vertical rotatable shaft connected to said motor means;

said slide means being formed with a substantially vertical bore for journaling said shaft contiguous said vertical member and slide bearing surfaces and said bore being substantially at the center of said horizontal member;

clamping means mounted on said guide member including upper and lower flanges projecting therefrom and adapted for receiving said arm and adjustable means threadably mounted on said flange for adjusting gripping said arm;

a cutter head mounted on said shaft for rotation there:

with; and

a cutter blade mounted on said cutter head adapted for planing the surface of said block to a smooth even plane;

said shaft being mounted on said slide member to posi tion said cutter blade so that the entire area of said block can be planed by said cutter blade.

2. A block leveler apparatus for a machine having an upright, an arm pivotally mounted on said upright and a block positioned below said arm comprising:

an elongated guide member adapted for connection to and substantially parallel with said machine arm and having at least two vertically spaced superposed bean.

ing surfaces running longitudinally thereof; slide means including a vertical member mounted for reciprocating movement on said guide and having a bearing surface in slidable engagement with one of said guide member bearing surfaces and a horizontal member connected to the upper part of said ver-.

tical member adapted for receiving a motor means, said horizontal member and said motor means overlapping said arm of said block leveler apparatus;

an adjustable bearing member mounted in vertical superposed relationship to said first named bearing surface on said slide member for sliding engagement with the other of said guide member bearing surfaces;

adjusting means mounted on said slide member in engagement with said adjustable bearing member for leveling said slide member in relation to the surface of said block;

motor means mounted on said horizontal member above said bearing surfaces including a substantially vertical shaft connected to said motor; said slide member being formed with a substantially vertical bore contiguous said slide bearing surfaces for journaling said shaft;

a cutter head mounted for rotation in said shaft for rotation therewith, and

a cutter blade mounted on said cutter head adapted for planing the surface of said block to a smooth even plane;

said shaft being mounted on said slide to position the edge of said cutter blade so that the entire area of said block can be planed by said cutter blade.

3. A block leveler apparatus for a machine having an upright, an arm pivotally mounted on said upright and a block positioned below said arm comprising:

an elongated guide member adapted for connection to and substantially parallel with said machine arm and having at least two vertically spaced bearing surfaces running longitudinally thereof;

an L-shaped member including a horizontal leg and a vertical leg depending downwardly therefrom mounted for reciprocating movement on said guide and said vertical leg having bearing surfaces in slidable engagament with said guide member bearing surfaces;

motor means mounted on said horizontal leg of said slide member including a substantially vertical shaft connected to said motor; said slide member being formed with a substantially vertical bore contiguous said slide bearing surfaces for journaling said shaft;

a cutter head mounted for rotation on said shaft for rotation therewith; and

a cutter blade mounted on said cutter head having the elongated side of said blade mounted axially to said cutter head and adapted for planing the surface of said block to a smooth even plane said blade being inclined at an angle from the vertical; and

said shaft being mounted on said slide to position the edge of said cutter blade so that the entire area of said block can be planed by said cutter blade.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 515,989 3/1894 Bausch 144-134 1,249,026 12/1917 Cash l442 1,458,220 6/1923 Cook et al. 1442 1,725,256 4/1930 Braren l5 X 2,536,006 12/1950 Linden et a1. 7728 ANDREW R. JUHASZ, Primary Examiner.

WILLIAM DYER, JR., Examiner.

G. A. DOST, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A BLOCK LEVELER APPARATUS FOR A MACHINE HAVING AN UPRIGHT, AN ARM PIVOTALLY MOUNTED ON SAID UPRIGHT AND A BLOCK POSITIONED BELOW SAID ARM COMPRISING: AN ELONGATED GUIDE MEMBER ADAPTED FOR CONNECTION TO AND SUBSTANTIALLY PARALLEL WITH SAID MACHINE ARM AND HAVING VERTICALLY SPACED LONGITUDINALLY EXTENDING SUPERPOSED BEARING SURFACES; SLIDE MEANS INCLUDING A VERTICAL SLIDE MEMBER SLIDABLY MOUNTED FOR RECIPROCATING MOVEMENT ON SAID GUIDE AND HAVING VERTICALLY SPACED SUPERPOSED BEARING SURFACES IN REGISTRATION WITH SAID GUIDE BEARING SURFACES AND A HORIZONTAL MEMBER CONNECTED TO THE UPPER PART OF SAID VERTICAL MEMBER ADAPTED FOR RECEIVING A MOTOR MEANS, SAID HORIZONTAL MEMBER AND SAID MOTOR MEANS OVERLAPPING SAID ARM OF SAID BLOCK LEVELER APPARATUS; MOTOR MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID HORIZONTAL MEMBER ABOVE SAID BEARING SURFACES INCLUDING A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL ROTATABLE SHAFT CONNECTED TO SAID MOTOR MEANS; SAID SLIDE MEANS BEING FORMED WITH A SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL BORE FOR JOURNALING SAID SHAFT CONTIGUOUS SAID VERTICAL MEMBER AND SLIDE BEARING SURFACES AND SAID BORE BEING SUBSTANTIALLY AT THE CENTER OF SAID HORIZONTAL MEMBER; CLAMPING MEANS MOUNTED ON SAID GUIDE MEMBER INCLUDING PAPER AND LOWER FLANGES PROJECTING THEREFROM AND ADAPTED FOR RECEIVING SAID ARM AND ADJUSTABLE MEANS THREADABLY MOUNTED ON SAID FLANGE FOR ADJUSTING GRIPPING SAID ARM; A CUTTER HEAD MOUNTED ON SAID SHAFT FOR ROTATION THEREWITH; AND A CUTTER BLADER MOUNTED ON SAID CUTTER HEAD ADAPTED FOR PLANING THE SURFACE OF SAID BLOCK TO A SMOOTH EVEN PLANE; SAID SHAFT BEING MOUNTED ONS AID SLIDE MEMBER TO POSITION SAID CUTTER BLADE SO THAT ENTIRE AREA OF SAID BLOCK CAN BE PLANED BY SAID CUTTER BLADE. 